FHL Tide Bites: “Touch Tank Moved”

Before the move: Colorful, thriving communities in the Fernald touch tank – Pema Kitaeff photo

We moved the ‘touch tank’ from under the stairs in the Fernald building at Friday Harbor Labs!
Story by Pema Kitaeff

Most visitors to FHL – whether they’re here for a year or an hour – are enamored with what we often call the “touch” or “pet” tank under the stairs in the Fernald building. From Jan 29th – Feb 10th, in preparation for planned work on the building’s lower floor, we managed to move every living anemone, chiton, and gunnel from the tank.

Many thanks for this effort are due to our intrepid maintenance crew and to Katie Dobkowski, a UW grad student in residence at FHL. We used multiple buckets, two pickup trucks, and a couple of coolers to move most of the pink coralline algae-covered rocks to 5 flowing seawater tables in Lab 8. Finally, a forklift was used to transport the largest boulder to a spot just below the pier’s boat sign-out shed, where UW divers may visit it on occasion.

One Pisaster and one urchin (out of over two dozen) looked slightly under-the-weather following the move and were returned to the sea. All other animals appear to be healthy and thriving in their temporary homes. We look forward to restoring our beloved touch tank to its former splendor when Fernald is ready. If you’ll be at FHL this May and you’re interested in helping with the move back, please contact Pema Kitaeff: [email protected].

Evacuation complete. Stay tuned for the tank restoration in late spring!
Pema Kitaeff photo

For more on FH Labs, check out their Spring 2015 Newsletter.

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